Cardinal Hall of Honor
Following his career as a versatile football player for the Cardinals. It is not surprising that Francis “Smitty” Hill became one of the most outstanding coaches produced by Lamar University.
While earning only two letters during LU’s waning junior college days and two more senior college letters, Hill played all offensive and defensive line positions and also called signals at quarterback.
Hill played on an 8-4 team in 1948 and was a key member of the grat 1949 club that went 10-2 and shared the Texas Junior College Conference co-championship. In LU’s first season against senior college competition in 1950, Hill set the school record for the longest defensive play of any kind when he returned a fumble recovery 99 yards.
Hill was a highly successful high school head coach at Port Arthur Jefferson and San Angelo Central before concluding his career as an assistant coach at New Mexico State and Stephen F. Austin. Hill had a combined 97-37-4 coaching record highlighted by powerful teams at Port Arthur. From 1967 through 1971, his teams were 45-9-2, and the 1970 Yellow Jackets advanced to the semifinals of the state playoffs.
